Many recreational boats have a platform to facilitate access to the water for swimmers, divers or equipment. Such platforms may be mounted to the side of the boat. Other such platforms mount to the transom of the boat near the water level and are typically referred to as swim (or dive) platforms.
Swim platforms may be formed as an integral part of a boat hull, as shown in U.S. Design Pat. No. 284,183. Swim platforms may also be permanently mounted to the transom of a boat, as shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,669,414. Such permanently mounted platforms may attach to the transom with a hinged mounting to allow adjustment of the platform to a horizontal position, as shown in U.S. Pat. No. 3,613,137. However, such platforms add to the length of the boat, requiring additional storage space.
Swim platforms may also be mounted to a boat hull in such a way that they can be removed. U.S. Pat. No. 4,854,534 shows such a mounting. This type of mounting avoids permanently extending the length of the boat, however, the stability of the platform may degrade over time as a result of wear in the mounting mechanism. Attachment and removal of the platform, and stresses resulting from its use, may cause ‘play’ to develop between the pieces of the mechanism, with the consequence that the platform moves relative to the boat during use. Furthermore, the detached swim platform must be separately stored and secured for transportation.
Hinged mounting mechanisms for swim platforms have also been developed. One such mechanism is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 5,915,328, which describes a panel in a side gunwale of a boat, hinged just above the water line along its bottom edge, that folds out from the boat to form a platform. Other mechanisms are known in which a swim platform is mounted to the transom of a boat with hinges in such a way that the platform stows by folding upward against the transom. When stowed, the upper surface of such a prior art platform faces the transom of the boat and the platform support hardware extends outward from the stowed platform. Where the transom of the boat is curved, custom designed blocks must be used to mount the hinges of such a prior art platform so that a single, horizontal axis is formed for the platform to rotate about when being deployed or stowed.
There is, therefore, a need in the art for an improved folding swim platform.